Oilers, Nugent-Hopkins agree to seven year deal

[JR Ewing]

EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers have taken another step in locking up their young core by signing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to a seven-year contract.

 

Nugent-Hopkins got US$42 million, the same amount the Oilers gave Taylor Hall on his seven-year deal. The $6-million cap hit is also the same as Jordan Eberle's, making for uniformity among Edmonton's top young forwards.

 

"We felt when we did the contracts with Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, that at that point we knew we'd be doing a very similar, if not identical, contract to what we did with those players," Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish told reporters. "This is just a reflection of how highly we hold Ryan within our organization."

 

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=432270

 

JR

 

[JR Ewing]

Very good piece of news for the Oilers today. After decades of watching young players beg to leave town, it's nice to see them stick around now.

 

JR

[jammer2]

@JR Ewing  6 mill is a very fair number for RNH and the Oilers. They could have really got burned on a bridge deal. As long as his shoulder holds up, I expect some slick 90 point seasons out of him in a few years.

[nhldave]

I come from the old school, you know, the one that says prove your worth before I pay you. RNH has yet to prove he will be a real star. With his injury record, defensive shortcomings and a  0.74 ppg record I think the Oliers have possibly made a huge mistake here. Maybe not, but the thing is RNH has not yet demonstrated he has all the tools, (including being able to stay healthy over an 82 game schedule) to warrant this level of income. I would have thought a one year deal to make sure he is the player the Oilers hope he is would have been a  more prudent decision.

Be that as it may the die is cast so I wish RNH a brilliant season helping to lead the Oilers back to greatness. 

[JR Ewing]

I come from the old school, you know, the one that says prove your worth before I pay you. RNH has yet to prove he will be a real star. With his injury record, defensive shortcomings and a  0.74 ppg record I think the Oliers have possibly made a huge mistake here. Maybe not, but the thing is RNH has not yet demonstrated he has all the tools, (including being able to stay healthy over an 82 game schedule) to warrant this level of income. I would have thought a one year deal to make sure he is the player the Oilers hope he is would have been a  more prudent decision.

Be that as it may the die is cast so I wish RNH a brilliant season helping to lead the Oilers back to greatness. 

 

Long time no talk dave... I remember you from hockeyforums, you signed up after the Bertuzzi incident...

 

Anyway.

 

-The old school approach was that you paid a player for what he did, and a contract like this is a situation where you're paying a player based on what you reasonable think he could accomplish. I have such a preference for the latter that it's not even funny.

 

-Injuries: yes, his shoulder has given him some trouble, and only time will tell how that works out. I know he needed surgery since he was 17, and he's finally had it. Perhaps one tell that it was successful was the Oilers willingness to sign him long term? The good news: the injuries weren't from the NHL being too rugged for someone of his size... He has made it up to 185 lbs now, btw.

 

-Defensive shortcomings? He was *very* good in this regard last year, and decent in his rookie year. I don't consider this to be a controversial statement, as he's been well regarded by scouts for a few years now. We're not talking about hitting, of course. That's something completely different. Even if he was a big hitter, when would he have the chance to throw them? His line has the puck most of the time.

 

-0.74 PPG... Over the last twenty years, since the days of table hockey levels of offense dropped, guess which teenagers have had higher PPG? Only three: Sidney Crosby (1.39), Steven Stamkos (0.88), Ilya Kovalchuk (0.81). You talk about his PPG as if it's low, but it's actually historically high. Just for fun, over the same period, only one teenager had a higher assists per game: Crosby. Not only is he young for an NHL player, he's young for a 1st overall pick. Only turned 20 in April, after the regular season was done.

 

JR

[jammer2]

  Also, if the shoulder turns out to be injury prone, he goes on LTIR, so the cap space would be there, just not exactly when they want it. A bright side?

[nhldave]

G'day JR. Ah yes Bertuzzi, so long ago. And I believe that's still in the courts; was supposed to finally get under way last April but I haven't seen anything on it since then.

 

You make very good points. My main concern is the goal production. In 2011 he scored 18 goals in 62 games, last year 4 goals in 40 games, that's less than half his scoring rate from last year. Interestingly enough in 2011 he scored just about double the number of goals in the first half compared to the second half. Both years (he played 19 games in the AHL last year)  his second half production is well down from his first half suggesting a concern about his durability. Now that may simply reflect that at 18 and 19 he's obviously still growing and could fill out and become more durable. The Oilers are clearly betting on that happening.

[JR Ewing]

G'day JR. Ah yes Bertuzzi, so long ago. And I believe that's still in the courts; was supposed to finally get under way last April but I haven't seen anything on it since then.

 

You make very good points. My main concern is the goal production. In 2011 he scored 18 goals in 62 games, last year 4 goals in 40 games, that's less than half his scoring rate from last year. Interestingly enough in 2011 he scored just about double the number of goals in the first half compared to the second half. Both years (he played 19 games in the AHL last year)  his second half production is well down from his first half suggesting a concern about his durability. Now that may simply reflect that at 18 and 19 he's obviously still growing and could fill out and become more durable. The Oilers are clearly betting on that happening.

 

I guess I should point out something before we go too far: I didn't go by JR at the other sight, but by my name of Daryl. I won't assume that you remember, but don't want you to confuse me with another person.   heh

 

Re: second half fall off... Yes, that was happening, but haven't been able to land on the cause. It could very well be that he just wasn't that big, but it also (each time) happened around the time that he aggravated the shoulder which had been hurting him since his days in Red Deer. I certainly don't blame him for not having the operation in junior, since he didn't want to miss time in his draft year.

 

You're right that the Oilers are obviously betting on things being better for him. My guess is that they've seen good reports from Hopkins' doctor.

 

JR

[yave1964]

I like the kid, a lot like everyone else. Shoulder injuries are scary for a young player, they generally do not ever go away. Cannot fault the Oilers, good to see them not afraid to recognize a player they feel will get them to the promised land and reward him accordingly, also rewarding the fans with the reassurance that he will be there to cheer on for a long time.